Can holder



Sept. 15 1925 1,553,441

A. c. GRUNWALD CAN HOLDER Filed Aug. 2. 1924 I -2 Sheets-Sheet 1 fig Sept. 15, 1925.

1,553,441 A. C. GRUNWALD CAN HOLDER Filed Aug. 2. 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented Sept. 15, 1925.

UNITED STATES 1,553,441 PATENT OFFICE.

ALBERT C. GRUNWALD, OF RIVER FOREST, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR TO PRECISION METAL WORKERS, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

CAN HOLDER.

Application filed August 2, 1924. Serial No. 729,671.

T all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT C. GRUNWALD, a citizen of the United States, and resident of River Forest, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Can Holders, of which the following is a full, clear, concise,. and exact description, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the specification.

My invention relates to a can holder, more especially an oil can holder, adapted for use on automotivevehicles, although not limited to such use. I contemplate the provision of a can holder which comprises a minimum number of parts (the preferred embodiment'herein illustrated comprising but three parts), which may be economically manufactured, which is adapted tightly to grasp and hold cans of various sizes supported thereby, but which, nevertheless, easily may be manipulated to place acan therein or to remove it therefrom. 7

In the accompanying drawings illustrating my invention:

Figure 1 is an elevational viewiillustrating the holder of my invention supporting an oil can of conventional size and shape;

Figure 2 is a top plan view illustrating the relatively moving parts of the holder in the positions occupied thereby when the holderis supporting an oil can of the kind illustrated in Figure 1; v

Figure 3 is a top plan view illustrating the oil can holder open and ready to receive an oil can, and

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the holder with its relativelymoving parts in the positions illustrated in full lines in Fig ure 3.

Similar characters of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The preferred embodiment of my invention illustrated in the accompanying drawings comprises three principal parts, namely, the platform 5', the cam plate 6,and the helical tension spring'7. V

The platform 5 is preferably in the form of a sheet metal stamping and is provided with a down-turned flange 8 provided with apertures 9 for the reception of screws whereby the holder is secured to a vehicle cowl 01 other suitable support. Struck upwardly from the platform 5 is a pair of lugs 10 and 10 which, as presently will be explalned, are adapted to engage against the margin of the bottom of the supported oil cans, these'lugs preferably being provided with more or less rounded shoulders 11-11 The cam plate is also preferably in the form of a sheet metal stamping and is pivoted bv rivet 16 for movement parallel and in contact with the horizontalportion of the platform 5. This cam plate is provided with a down-struck apertured lug 17 which is adapted to travel in the arcuate slot 15, the movement of thecam plate 6'to its open position'being limited by the engagement of lug 17 with one end of the aforesaid arcuate slot 15. It will be noted that the spring 7 acts between the lug 17 and the previously mentioned platform lug 1.4 When the cam plate 6 is moved'to the limit of its movement in opposition to the tension of spring 7, the said spring holds the cam plate in the positi-on, i. e. the open position, illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 due to the then existing relation between the pivot 16 and the spring terminals. However, as soon as the cam plate is moved toward the position of Figure 2 sufficiently to carry the line between the spring terminals away from the pivot 16', the cam plate quickly is moved toand firmly is held in one of its closed or can-holding positions such as is illustrated in full lines in Figure 2. a I

- It will be noted that the cam plate 6 is provided with a pair of up-turned marginal lu'gs 18'and 19, the lug19 being offset to provide a handle portion 20 and being provided with a rounded shoulder 21 corresponding to the shoulders 11 of the platform lugs 10 and 10 The lug 19- is a can-holding lug and. the lug 18 is adapted to be engaged-by a can to initiate movement of the cam plate, under influence of the spring 7, fromits open position to one of its closed or can-holding positions. It will be noted that the cam plate is provided with a shoulder 22 adapted to engage the latformlug 10 to determine the limit to w ich the cam plate may be moved under the influence of spring 7 and that the cam plate is cut away at 23 to accommodate the lug 10 when the shoulder 22 lies against or in proximity to the lug 1Q.

Assuming that the holder is in the position illustrated in Figures 3 and 4 and that an oil can is to be placed therein, the said can is placed on the cam plate 6 and pressed against the lug 18 to initiate movement of the cam plate in a direction to cause shoulder 22 to approach lug 10. As soon as the terminals of spring 7 have passed out of line with pivot 16 the said spring quickly moves the cam plate to shift the lug 18 out of contact with the periphery of the can bottom and to cause the can firmly to be clamped in the embrace of the lugs 10, 10 and 19'. It will'be understood that the lugs 10, 10 and 19 are adapted to lie in a plurality of different circles eccentric to the pivot 16 and that the holder is for this reason capable of receiving and holding oil cans of-various sizes. 1 In order to remove the'can, the h'andle 20 is preferably grasped to move the cam plate to the open position of Figures 3 and 4:, the cam plate thenbeing held in its said open position due to the then existing relation between the spring 7 and the pivot 16. o E

It will be seen that the act of withdrawing an oil can from my improved holder leaves the cam plate 6 in the open position of Fig. fl, i. e. ready to have'its lug 18 engaged by the oil can when the latter is pla-ced'inthe holder and solely by engagement with the oil can to be startedtoward closed position The-user of the oil can, in restoring it to the holder, need; not necessarily touch any part of the holder.

I appreciate that the preferred embodi ment of my invention herein illustrated may be varied in considerable detail and for that'reason I do not limit myself to the specific arrangement of parts herein shown and described bntowish to coverall similar and equivalent constructions coming within the scope of the appended claims.

VVha't I desire to claim by United States Letters Patent, is:

1'. A can holder comprising a supporte'ngaging stationary platform, can abutment means? extending above the surface of the platforrhtdapted to engage two" points on the periphery of acan bottom, a cam plate pivo'tally Ino'unted on said platform for movement parallel therewith,'a can abutment eXtendi-ngabov'e the cam plate arranged.

ts? engage the periphery of the bottonrrof a? can disposed eccentric to the cam plate pivot and in two-pointeng-agement with the the holder. 1

abutment means of the platform, stops determining the limits of movement between the platform and cam plate, and a spring acting between the platform and cam plate and so related to the cam p late pivot as to hold the cam plate against one of said stops when moved to open position and adapted to move the cam plate to hold a can between the abutment means of the platform and cam plate pursuant to an initial movement of the cam plate away from said last men'- tioned stop. i i

2. A holder for an oil can or the; like comprising a platform provided with upstanding abutments adapted to engage two points 'on the periphery of a can bottom, a movable member a'daptedto engage a third point on the said periphery and movable around an axis eccentric to and at right angles to the can bottom, stops for said movable member, a spring adapted to hold said movable member in open position when moved against'one of said stops but adapted to permit the movable member. to move away from said stop and into engagement with the periphery of a can bottom, said movable member comprising a portion adapted to be engaged by the can to effectinitial movement of the movable member to hold the can in In an oil can holder, the combination with a stationary platform, a cam plate mounted thereon for movement parallel therewith, said platform and cam plate comprising lugs for engaging three points on the periphery of a can bottom, a spring adapted'to hold said cam plate in eachof two positions to which it may be moved, i.- e; an open position anda can-holdingposi'tiom and means carried by the cam pla-te adapted to be engaged by a can to initiate movement of the cam plate from open position to 'a can-holding position. i

4. In an oil can holder, the combination with a platform, a cam plate movable there on, abutments of which one iscarried by the cam plate for engaging three points onthe periphery of a can bottom, said cam plate adapted to lie in lanfopen position lillti l started to move away from said open posi-' tion, spring means associated with the cam plate adapted to movethe cam: plate to a can-holding position when started to move away from said open position, and means on the cam plate for engagement-by a can to initiate movement of the camplate away m a Open? p s ion, ,1 o

In witness whereof, I hereunto' 1ibscribe my name this 30th: day of July, 1924.

ALBERT o. GR 'UNWALD' 

